Need help with edelbrock 1406 carb
That
For years I praised the AFB and is derivatives. However, When I installed a 1406 on my 273 I had problems. After messing with it for several weeks, I retuned it and bought a Street Demon. Problems solved!
These carbs are known for being fuel pressure sensitive. If you research, you will find that they recommend you run a pressure regulator set at 5.5 psi or less. Without the pressure regulator when you get on it the pump will increase the pressure. When the pressure gets above 6 psi it bends the float tabs and resets the float height. I have ran into this on nearly every Edelbrock I have seen run. I rebuild mine and will be rebuilding 3 of them this week. They all get a cheap psi regulator now.
It's nice to run the fuel line on the fender away from the heat anyway. Adding a regulator this way will help keep the fuel cooler also.
This is another reason I wish people would just leave these cars stock. All the mopars I had that were left factory original were ultra reliable. Chrysler engineered all those parts to work together perfectly. Then someone plays mix-n-match.
This person didn’t even have an air cleaner that fit the car correctly on it. When I brought it home I looked at it and the element had about an inch of space above it where it didn’t touch the top of the housing. Air and dust could just go right over the top of the filter and into the engine. I bought that edelbrock air cleaner because it fits the carb they had put on the car.
The plus is that the car has no rust and runs like a top until this.
Anyway the car has the factory block mounted mechanical fuel pump. Don’t know what the PSI is that it puts out,but what you say makes sense since it did it after I was on the freeway. If the floats bend under pressure sounds like that happened.why wouldn’t edelbrock make these to withstand the pressure of a normal mechanical fuel pump? The fuel line is stock. I’d prefer not to drill holes or mount it on my fender if I had a choice. The car is all original execpt for the 360 engine and the engine is factory except for the intake and carb.
So I’m curious,what do you charge to rebuild a 1406? What regulator do you recommend? Where are you located maybe I could send mine to you. Or can you recommend a better carb for the 360 for a daily driver that would work with the edelbrock intake. Something that doesn’t need a regulator?
These carbs are actually very simple and once innitially tuned for the engine and altitude, they retain that. Not as fussy as Holley.
I would check the fuel pressure with a "T" in the fuel hose just before the carb. My 1406 had no pressure regulator and I had no problems.
If fuel pressure is 5# to 6#, it should be fine.
Then remove the top and remove the n/seat to check for crud. Another place to inspect if you had an improper air filter assembly, is the air bleeds in the top area of the air horn. These also act as siphon breaks when you come back to idle or shut the engine off. If this is plugged with dust, sand or other small road debris it can siphon fuel. It will drip out of the main boosters. If tbis is the case, remove the carb and dismantle. Watch the accelerator pump check valve. Then you can blow back through with carb cleaner.
A good source is;
How to Rebuild and Modify Carter/Edelbrock Carburetors, available through CarTech Books. 1-800-551-4754 or 1-651-277-1203.
Parts; The Carburetor Shop; 1-651-770-3505. They have a web site; the
carburetorshop.com.
If it ran before when you bought it, I would say clean out the carb, check the needle and seat. Worst case the Carburetor shop can rebuild it. If you go this way, think about getting them to convert it to the annular boosters from the 1906. Get a wide band O2 sensor so you can drive and record readings, get a friend to write it down. Then with the 1906 or 1406 cal kit you can dial it in to close to EFI standards.